Laurence Olivier interview from 1983, part 1 of 2

[MrRazorblade999]

Is it safe?

[kingcaesar5]

only if richard burton had been directed by wyler

[mineurbizness]

was he and danny kaye lovers?

[RetroJenny]

My favorite actor! These actors now would not be worthy to be in the same room.

[csawyer55]

Search Shakespeare in the Kitchen-14 characters in 14 weeks

[saukrates420]

montgomery clift deserves a mention

[the44118]

I have nothing but respect for Olivier but there is no way he is in the same league as Brando. Brando did an exellent job as Marc Antony in Julius Caesar

[philster611]

My opinion about the difference between Brando and Olivier is that Brando enthralled you, and Olivier amazed you... Olivier made it look so natural whereas Brando looked so natural.

[misspeaking]

It's so sad how in love Olivier and Leigh were, but they just couldn't stay together. :(

[VengeanceIsMineBitch]

he reminds me of me - his brilliance at least. all i can tell you lesser beings, is that it is extremely lonely at the top.

[dirtynuke]

What a very brilliant and intriguing actor.

[bowler8]

I would loved to have met him...he is fascinating

[bowler8]

Wuthering Heights - a never ending love

[stella3265]

@RichardElden  is spam!!!

[Lahoreumar]

The great talent and fame attributed to legendary actors like Charlton Heston and Laurance Olivier was due to the prime reason that these actors were polished by the legendary director - William Wyler. Wyler gave a tough time to Olivier in Wuthering Heights (1939) and was able to get the life time best performance out of Heston in BEN-HUR (1959).

[stella3265]

@Lahoreumar Olivier's performance as Heathcliff was superb. Wyler had nothing to do with Olivier's talent at producing,acting, directing and his interpretation of Shakespear on film!!!!

[stella3265]

@Lahoreumar whatever Wyler did with Olivier in Wuthering Heights had nothing to do with what Olivier did on the stage as well as Shakespear on film, what is it that you do not understand? does Scorsesse get all the credit for making DeNiro great? does Kazan get all the credit for making Brando great?, does Fellini get all the credit for making Mastrianni great? does Kurasawa get all the credit for making Mfune great? I don't know? I don't think so. how many times did Olivier work with Wyler

[philster611]

@Lahoreumar but Wyler was also tough on Heston too. Heston recalls in the making of Ben Hur that Wyler said he has to be better than he was...... Better than he had ever been...... Heston speaks with great poignancy when he recalls this...... He knew what Wyler was asking and he knew what it meant to his career....

[frickadele]

Larry was born to lie...and became an actor.

He smoked pot...which chilled him out.

He was a cheat...and love Danny Kaye.

He was a high, overpaid for lying, cheat.

Your parents were higher on the food chain...

but you admired your parents less...

than this creature.

[rockhammer85]

There are two types of observer when it comes to performance. The first actually knows a bit about acting and drama and can see that Olivier was a genius; the second doesn't have a clue about either and thinks Marlon Brando was a genius - usually out of man-love.

[CrispinFlora]

Is it safe?!? ---- Is it safe?!? Three words that come to my mind each time I see him.

Hear of him. And Vivien Leigh (the greatest screen personality that ever moved us from the movie screen).

[MichaelSirois]

Genius.

[stella3265]

Great Actors do not act, they behave. Before Brando, actors acted, after Brando, they behaved. The "Method" does not exist. Brando always referred to what he does as a "Craft". Olivier was a great architect, Brando was and is the greatest actor period. If you would have asked Olivier who the greatest was he would say "Marlon" as a matter of fact you can see it on video. Brando changed film acting.

[JuanMacready]

Tracy was far better than Brando.

[vinciano]

@JuanMacready Spencer Tracy? Dont make me laugh...

[JuanMacready]

@vinciano Tracy is Captains Courageous is better than anything the talentless cancer-ridden blind obese bisexual paedophile Brando ever did.

[vinciano]

@JuanMacready u don't need consideration.

[vinciano]

@vinciano Neither i search for it from r side.

[olqutseg]

All well and good, but the question is..

''Is it safe?''

[tbtbtwotwos]

@olqutseg i know!!!!!!!! but is it safe?

[mcferns21]

Goodness, the part where he is talking about Vivien almost makes me cry. The way he describes her eyes and pout of her lips, you can tell he still has a painful and tragic love for her. Greatest cinema couple of all time.

[lapetiteombre]

@mcferns21 I couldn't help but think the same thing. When he describes her, there is such tenderness in his voice. He looks up whistfully as if picturing her. I honestly think they loved each other until they died. You are right... a painful and tragic love. Heartbreaking.

[JuanMacready]

@lapetiteombre He was acting.

[Rebeldewayraluka]

I think it was very difficult to Laurence olivier to talk about vivien, he loved her very much

[nancydrew5]

Lawrence Olivier, Marlon Brando, Paul Newman, my fantasy would be to have a week with each of them individually during the height of their sexuality. These are Men! Hmmm, I'd die a happy woman!

[midori81]

@nancydrew5 ahhh... yes, when men were Men!

these days we'll be lucky enough to see a hunk bloke whose ego isn't bigger than his steroid-filled biceps, lol...

[Kapputschino12]

He looks like another great actor; Hugo Arana.

[Karsch100]

Great interview. They don't make actors like Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh anymore...

[fishandfestival]

Laurence Olivier could transform himself into almost anyone...In my view, he was to dramatic roles what Peter Sellers was to comedic roles...Olivier is extremely articulate and does a fantastic interview, unlike many great actors who come alive on screen but, when playing themselves, they are dull and boring...Olivier is different in that regard..."Use your weaknesses, aspire to your strengths"...A brilliant quote from perhaps the greatest actor who ever lived...Bravo Sir Laurence!...Bravo!!

[peaceandmetal88]

To call The Godfather a masterpiece is laughable? Holy shit dude, you're certainly in one of the smallest minorities on that one. Olivier is a genius, but he didn't do the film, get over it. It was 40 years ago. And Brando was brilliant in the film, just for the record.

[ndm707]

They could have been married til the end of Vivien's life if only they had invented the psychotropic drugs that they are using now to treat bipolar disorder/manic depression which Vivien Leigh suffered because of some unhappy incidents in her life.  May their souls rest in peace.

[milesc1949]

Splendid! just Splendid! Well done Larry old boy you would cetainly knock the spots off a lot of young ruffians today!

yours Miles Clark

[milesc1949]

Splendid! just Splendid! Well done Larry old boy you would cetainly knock the spots off a lot of young ruffians today!

yours Miles Clark

[92af]

John Gielgud was much better than Laurence Olivier was

[injamaven]

so handsome as Heathcliff.

[gauchatche]

Laurence seems gay when he talks hehehehehehe...

[phoenixtimes2]

The absolute consummate actor. Perfect!

[imsorry14]

60 minutes.

[charliebubblesoar]

hot

[TheJazzlady40]

I Bow down to the great Sir Laurence

[TheJOnasSisterz]

how adorable lol :P

[judelko]

a knighthood is given by the queen for exceptional service or achievement. he was the youngest actor ever to receive a knighthood. he was made a life peer, baron olivier of brighton, lord olivier, which means he could attend the house of lords and speak in parliament. the first actor to be made a lord. he received the order of merit, the personal gift of the queen of which only 24 people are members at a time.

he was too ill to take the role of 'the godfather'. brando just doesn't compare.

[chosanzapan]

Thanks judelko for your instructive words clarifying the distinctions in the blue blood family.

The actual regent gave the tittle of sir to Eric Clapton, and she actually asked him

-sort of- "what do you do for a living?"

[flaminia5]

one of the greatest!

bytheway does sir not automatically mean lord?

[jimmihshs]

no a lord and a knight are different.

to be a lord that is a title you must inherit from family. however the queen can make anyone a knight, but they may not get any land or anything.

[flaminia5]

@jimmihshs so he was Sir Laurence? is this correct?

thank you very much

[jimmihshs]

@flaminia5 i think he was both a lord and a knight, however i am not certain. i hope i helped!

[flaminia5]

@jimmihshs thank you, you have a knowledge, i dont't have

[bljam]

Knight and Lord are different. The title Lord could be inherited (hereditary peerage) or bestowed on you (life peerage) Olivier was knighted in the 40's and given a life peerage in 1970.

[Shabannie]

Thank you for posting this.

--------Ellen

[toothbrush55]

There's no denying Olivier was a brilliant actor and i'm a big fan of his work...but he sounds like an arrogant shithead.

[PeterFirthFan]

Brando was better than Olivier.

[luckystar974]

I don't think so...

[PeterFirthFan]

Of course he was. Brando was a natural film actor, Olivier was just an overacting ham.

[rayjr62]

@PeterFirthFan Maybe on the big screen, but not on the stage. Sorry.

[PeterFirthFan]

Did you ever see Brando on stage?

[dsbnh]

Brando was as good on stage as Olivier and the praise he obtained early in his career was based entirely on his stage career prior to film. People always dismiss Brando's stage work simply because he never returned to it after stardom on the big screen. I feel this is a huge mistake.

[thebee135]

I just love Vivien Leigh...He was the love of her life!

[bohigasss]

what is the fucking point in comparing brando with olivier? they are great actors but in a very different way....don't you guys have nothing better to do than stupid comparisons?

[92af]

Laurence Olivier was totaly better than Marlon Brando was

[martythetickler]

Olivier & Brando are the two the greatest actors of all time.

[Stuart0000X]

@martythetickler

I agree with you in reference to Olivier, but Brando, its debatable.

[Dramactica]

@martythetickler

Brando--greatest actor? yeah right :P

[martythetickler]

@Dramactica Well, I've never seen a bad movie of his. Godfather, Streetcar, Julius Caesar, On the Waterfront, Apocalypse Now. And I haven't seen his Mutiny on the Bounty, but I hear it's good.

[tbtbtwotwos]

@martythetickler olivier, brando, de niro, streep, pacino

[PhillyDippy5]

@martythetickler I think Laurence Olivier was the most gifted actor ever and Marlon Brandon the most impressive actor, they are the Lennon and McCartney of cinema.

[11october1893]

I agreeOlivier had so many more dimensions than Brando - Olivier was a great Shakespearian actor (and filmmaker), the greatest stage actor, a Hollywood idol, film star, the founder of the national theatre, a sir and a lord! Brando was probably the greatest American actor who undoubtedly influenced a generation - but hes no way near Olivier

[j1a2v3e4]

@11october1893

I agree with you

[caramelizeme]

@11october1893 no

[Hartebreaker84]

@11october1893 Olivier and Brando are proper actors!! They learn't from the bottom. Stage school, Films. Actors now a day no disrespect to the rock and will smith but they didn't learn, they were just big names who got roles to sell the film. Sad really for great men like these two!

[vinciano]

@11october1893 Watch Brando in Julius Caesar.. then u will change r opinion.

[11october1893]

@vinciano Ive watched Brando in Julius Caesar…. But I also saw Olivier on-stage and so my opinion is still the same

[vinciano]

@11october1893 I love Olivier. What's the matter?

[stella3265]

@11october1893 Hey, how are you? I just saw "Sleuth" which I have not seen in a long time. Brilliant performance by Sir Larry!!!! Caine was good as well!! Bye

[Thesaeed23]

@11october1893 Poppy Cock! - Larry was just an actor for the stage - he never really dominated the screen. Viviene Leigh and Brando knew how to make the camera love them! Both were far sexier than Larry ever was.

[JPLV]

@11october1893 I don't think you can compare their abilities as actors due to their different "methods" of acting.

Marlon Brando could have been an even greater acting force, if he had actually LOVED acting, instead he just saw it as a way to make a living, a job.

He could probably have been an incredible stage actor, if he hadn't found it so grueling (he didn't want to do theater after 'Streetcar', because it was mentally and physically tough to play such a complex character as Stanley.

[JPLV]

@11october1893 I think you have to "categorize" actors, because they are so different.

IMO the greatest are. Olivier as a stage actor, Brando as the 'method-actor' and Spencer Tracy as the 'Hollywood-actor'.

[zarco1977]

@JPLV bullshit

[BlackenedForLife]

Correct. I definitely agree.

[1954phialin]

I loved him since Heathcliff and Richard III ...And I believe what he said about acting---a game..

Life is just a game we all play..

[rollingklouds]

Lear was easy for him?!

That has been the best ever of Laurence Olivier.

However, I didn't like his Khartoum at all. Too much stereotyping.

[biomoni]

Me emociona la lectura (of course , Y learn english) y comparto la cultura de un inmenso y espectacular actor como es Sir Lawrence Olivier.

Siceramente, muchos actores deberían aprender de tan magnífico interprete

Desde Uruguay, donde los indios ya no tienen plumas, y espero que recuerden que el SUR TAMBIÉN EXISTE. envío saludos y respetos.

[toffeematt]

loved to have given him a good crack in the mouth Laurence Olivier was quite possibly in my opinion one of the greatest all time actors he was just the complete package If I had to compare him to someone like Brando then Olivier would definitely win hands down because he was always such a very nice calm well mannered respectable gentleman and he would of been honestly my perfect choice to play the Godfather because its a role that he should have been originally given but then was turned down

[toffeematt]

Laurence Olivier I feel would of made an exceptional Don Vito Corelone In the Godfather he would of been light years better than Marlon Brando who I could not stand his constant mumbling had me on the verge of falling fast asleep and why so many people call it a masterpiece is laughable firstly Brando ruined the overall structure of the movie with his rather boring predictable display as the Mafia Don and James Caan was really annoying to watch as the eldest son god if I was Michael I would of

[whitehousesurgery]

yes she had already passed away, and i do not believe that he went round just to check out the furniture. what script are you reading from!!!

[whitehousesurgery]

Actually guys, she loved him right to the end, despite living with Merivale. He left her cause she was out of control, mentally, and he couldn't keep up with her. They were the royal couple of the theatre. BTW he sat with her when she died and was beside himself with grief. Although he remarried, Vivien was the love of his life; his words not mine! He played her films and just adored her text. Sometimes people just cannot live together despite their adoration for one another.

[PeterFirthFan]

She was already dead by the time he got there and he just went around choosing which pieces of furniture were his.

[honysia]

If he loved Vivien truly, he would never leave her... Especially, when she needed his support the most. He's an egoist, he may be a great actor, but he's self-centered egoist. That's my opinion about him.

[maximumpub]

expert on mental illness are you??

[honysia]

It's just MY PERSONAL OPINION.

[DrinkWater22]

Moron, they didn't love each other in the end, and she was already living with another man by the time they divorced.

[honysia]

Can you read? I've written: 'It's MY PERSONAL OPINION'. Satisfied? And don't call me a moron.

[DrinkWater22]

Obviously. Otherwise I wouldn't have replied. Your opinion is wrong. The feelings were mutual during the divorce. She didn't NEED his support because she already living with actor John Merivale. Face it, they weren't a very good couple in the final years of marriage.

[Saffron333]

Now, children, if you can't play nice you're both going to have to go in the house and take a nap. Play nice.

[meladorimagpie]

Back in the 50s they didn't have proper treatment for bipolar disorder like they do today, therefore it must have been EXTRA hard for him to deal with. He said after she got shock therapy she wasn't the same, but they didnt know what else to do. I think anyone else back then would have kicked her to the curb long before Larry did. Also, if he were such a jerk, why would she have married him? She was an intelligent and independent woman, not the type to let men walk all over her

[Robinl1278]

My heart doesn't break for him when he speaks of Vivien...while I do believe she had an array of mental issues, I think he played a role in some of it. She nailed it on her first try in Hollywood while he was an ultimate failure at first...had a bad taste in his mouth from his first go-round there....and I feel there was a jealousy there...that's not to take away from his great talent....I just feel he might not have been a great person....

[DrinkWater22]

Actually, Vivien is known for only two roles, as oppose to Olivier who's known for dozens. He was already a well known actor of the theatre when he met her. He's an icon, while she is known for her Oscar winning roles. If anything Olivier HELPED her career and got her more roles in the theatre, and allow her to display her talents that film companies generally ignored.

[broadwaybound2015]

I have to say that I got tears listeing to him speak about vivien leigh if it wasnt for her illness they would have always been together!! He loved her so much it still hurts him to talk about her!!

[PadrethePio]

Wow...Vivien Leigh...the epitome of sensuality.

[DrinkWater22]

Jeez, all you people are hung up on his personal life with Vivien Leigh. He's much more than that.

[BicycleForTwo]

My heart just broke for him when he was talking about Vivien. Manic depression is an extremely tough thing to deal with and you could tell he wanted to help her.

[steerpike66]

Bisexual. The best ones always are; emotional insight and fluid sexuality are intimately linked.

[hugh0221]

I thought he also changed his voice while he performed foreign accent, like Dutch in A Bridge Too Far, & German in Marathon Man.

But I found that he had the same voice(with that accent voice) in The Entertainer.

Which one is his real voice, this one or that one?

[meladorimagpie]

this was his real voice, although when he was younger it was a little deeper

[Bandtrip50]

When Vivien Leigh first laid eyes on Larry he was exceptionally good-looking and to top it off extremely talented as an actor!

He turned her on sexually!

Vivien wanted him outright! And said so.

And she got him (she could have anyone she wanted-she was so beautiful and knew it).

She stole him from his wife and child. And she left her husband and baby girl.

And she paid the price for this.

Guilt.

They were the beautiful couple and made a fortune and it didn't last.

[rkau8671]

i loved him and Vivien Leigh together!!!!! they were both magnificant onscreen!!!!!

[Kittens38]

When I was a young girl I was oddly in love with him and his movies and when he died when I was in college..I cried as if I lost a dear old love. What an amazing man.

[trschaefer]

Great classical actor. Not so great on film. Vivien was the great film actress.

[AnotherDarkAngel]

Is it wrong for me to ssay that even in his old age he was a handsome man?

[26mae1987]

amazing actor probs ever! when he talked about vivien his eye sparkled and then splitting up she looked so sad she once said id rafer live a short life with out larry then a long life with him so sad id like to think there together now!

[stellalumas]

Bravo!! I LOVE him, and this was a good piece. Thanks very much.

[StupidFoolLady]

Love this actor!!!

[mydyingbride907]

Sure jerked Vivien leigh around-- " But she was mentally ill..."-- what a stereotypical dismissal of a human being. Abraham Linclon was "mentally ill". So was Winston Chuchill. SO many others. This is an interview of Olivier-- but Vivien got a stereotyped back of the hand from 60 minutes with that glib dismissal.

[Dirkdebruyne]

maybe Olivier knew just a little more about her than you do...??? she was a great actress, at least in films, but she was definitely menally ill...what's so awfull about stating the obvious truth ?

[mydyingbride907]

Because its not the whole truth.. and it doesn't encompass the person.. VL HAD untreated bipolar disorder but having "mental illness" is not a self-evident explanation for anything ( he "could take no more" ) or an encompassing description of anyone. There are many types and degress of "mental illness" Olivier was gay-- certainly bisexual.. there was a time when that would be a dismissal also... perhaps VL "could take no more" of Olivier's affairs with men...

[meladorimagpie]

Even if he was bisexual-and you're right, he probably was-Vivien was the love of his life, that much, to me, is obvious. I don't think there was any one factor that broke them up, but I do think her illness was a big part. Vivien may have been the one with bipolar disorder, but the both suffered as the two parties dealing intimately with that illness in that relationship. He couldn't cope so he felt he had to get out, that doesn't make him a bad person and it doesn't mean he ever stopped caring

[meladorimagpie]

Obviously Larry had a hard time talking about her illness, I think that's even evident here, like 20 years after she died. A lot of hardships happened in their marriage especially in the end. Just because 60 Minutes "dismissed it" doesn't mean Larry ever did. I don't think he ever quite got over her, even if he couldn't live with her.

[meladorimagpie]

Obviously Larry had a hard time talking about her illness, I think that's even evident here, like 20 years after she died. A lot of hardships happened in their marriage especially in the end. Just because 60 Minutes "dismissed it" doesn't mean Larry ever did. I don't think he ever quite got over her, even if he couldn't live with her.

[oldaba]

Thank you so much for posting it! He is a wise man and a genius!

[meladorimagpie]

What a fabulous interview! The part where he talks about Vivien Leigh is so sweet/sad at the same time. You can tell he loved her very much. They're my favorite classic couple

Thanks for sharing this!

[ShakespeareHamlet]

exellent interview with the greatest Shakespearean actor of his generation. The Bard himself would be very proud. Kenneth Branagh also approaches Oliver's style.

[fllad]

HELLO

[ShakespeareHamlet]

hey yourself.